Ukraine and USA broker pivotal ceasefire deal with Russia
Ukraine and the USA have reached an agreement on a ceasefire with Russia. This deprives the Kremlin of its initiative and prevents it from shifting responsibility for continuing the fighting onto the authorities in Kyiv, assessed Andriy Kovalenko, head of Kyiv's government Centre for Countering Disinformation.
What you need to know
- Ukraine and the USA have reached an agreement on a ceasefire with Russia, which, according to Andriy Kovalenko, head of the Centre for Countering Disinformation, deprives the Kremlin of initiative.
- The meeting in Jeddah in Saudi Arabia was crucial for the arrangements that are not favourable to Russia, which is attempting to disrupt the talks.
- Russia is conducting a propaganda campaign in the West, claiming that Ukraine does not want peace, which Kovalenko considers to be untrue.
Andriy Kovalenko emphasised that Ukraine is ready for peace, and the decision for a ceasefire now rests with Moscow. "The ball is in Moscow's court. Ukraine is ready for peace. If Putin does not cease fire, it will only confirm that his main goal is further war," wrote Kovalenko on Telegram.
Kovalenko noted that Russia had hoped for concessions, such as the handing over of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, which Ukraine firmly rejects. In his view, the fact that negotiations continue shows that Russia's strategy has not produced the expected results.
"The question remains whether Russian diplomacy is ready"
"Of course, Donald Trump is more interested in constructive dialogue than confrontation, which (the dialogue) should lead to a specific result," he underlined.
Kovalenko expressed the expectation that the agreements between Ukraine and the USA will put Russia to the test. "The question remains whether Russian diplomacy, which banked on the failure of the talks, is ready for such developments. Does Lavrov have a contingency plan for such a scenario, since the Ukrainian-American agreement deprives Russia of initiative in the negotiations," summed up Kovalenko.
Ukraine - USA talks. What was agreed?
The United States and Ukraine announced progress in the talks regarding a ceasefire. Ukraine accepted the US proposal for a 30-day truce. Now the decision lies with Russia. The USA will meet with Russia to discuss the terms of the truce.
President Donald Trump announced further diplomatic meetings and the invitation of Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the White House.
During Tuesday's talks in Saudi Arabia, the topic of resuming American military aid to Ukraine also arose. Washington expressed readiness to resume equipment deliveries and intelligence sharing. "The United States will immediately lift the pause on intelligence sharing and resume security assistance to Ukraine," reads the joint statement of both countries.
